People throughout the globe enjoy going to the beach and spending substantial time in and around the water. More specifically, vast amounts of people take to surfing, paddle boarding and other board related activities on a daily basis. Participants enjoy filming these sports at all angles, and the public enjoys viewing such videos. Surfers, paddle boarders, and other board users often seek new and unique camera angles to capture their fun. Footage is readily available on the internet of athletes holding cameras, mounting cameras on different part of their bodies, using helicopters, drones, and other methods.
One particular angle that is very unique and desirable is an underwater view. More specifically, surfers often find bottle nose dolphins following their boards and riding the wake. Surfers have often wondered what the view from the dolphin's prospective would look like.
However, trying to film underwater video while surfing presents unique difficulties. The camera must be enclosed in a water housing. Existing water housings are typically bulky and are difficult to mount to a watersports board. Moreover, the water turbulence, speed of the surfboard, and the surfboard's rapid movements all make it difficult to keep a camera steady. Similarly, the sheer size and shape of existing underwater camera mounts adversely impact the performance of watersports boards.
Prior systems have been relegated to filming above the water, but there is an unmet need to capture angles from under the water. The few attempts at providing an underwater camera mount end up creating drag, and cannot be mounted to lighter weight items such as paddle boards and surfboards as a result of the drag. Thus there remains an unmet need for an apparatus or system which can be mounted to the underside of water vehicles that minimizes drag while providing a housing or system for incorporating a camera for filming from an underwater perspective.